Bleach Drifter
by halberd42
Summary: Ichigo figured his life without powers was going to be uneventful. Now from just a phone call, he had to save the world from an unknown future. first fanfic like this! IchigoxHarem DISCONTINUED
1. Chapter 1

**To the people who were expecting a chapter on my first story; I'm so sorry. This is a challenge fic I wanted to try from Mas2009, and its going to be a Bleach crossover with Psyren, which hasn't been done before till today. Here were the conditions for either a normal or a crossover fic:**

**-pairings must be ageha/nemesis Q (No.7) or harem (only if nemesis is in it)**

**-crossover with other fanfics are ok: if that's the case pairing nemesis with the hero of the other anime/manga is also ok in case you don't like ageha. (I don't mind naruto/nemesis q or ichigo/nemesis q...)**

**-you can improvise or take some hints from other animes/mangas; as you know the topic of psyren is psychic powers and that can be added to all other type of powers... I'll let you imagine the rest**

**Mas2009 allowed the harem part for crossovers also; I'm sorry if it seems like i'm only doing harem fic's.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything of Bleach, Psyren, or any hints from other **anime/manga I may add in future chapters.****

* * *

><p>Things as they were with the daily life of Ichigo Kurosaki, former Substitute Shinigami, were somewhat a torture. After losing is powers three months ago, not have to worry about late nights to fight, and have his school work suffer because of Hollows, made him feel paranoid.<p>

Unlike every other normal human, Ichigo was aware of spiritual beings, and monsters out there that could easily kill him in his current condition. Now that he couldn't see Hollows he was tense, expecting to be attacked when away from his friends. Speaking of them, Uryu, Orihime, and Sado, nicknamed 'Chad', had apparently agreed on not letting the orange haired teen know about spiritual related business, probably as a means to try and help him move on.

Because of that, Ichigo was sure they were drifting farther and farther apart. His friends seemed to think since he was so normal now; very vulnerable, like a piece of glass that would shatter if anyone put any pressure on him. While he was vulnerable, he wasn't _that_ helpless; his reaction time and reflexes were still sharp as they had been. Plus, his body's strength and endurance was toned and conditioned close to an Olympic track and field stars, and his motor memory and battle experience were as keen as they ever were.

Ichigo retained many benefits to his physical body, even if he didn't have his Shinigami powers. If his old team are going to keep the charade up at this rate…

Wham!

"Ow!" the orange haired teen in his high school uniform wince from the blow to his head, scowl forming on his face as his brown eyes glared at the offender. "What the hell was that for?"

"You're not paying attention, Ichigo-chan." An older woman with raven hair with bangs that part to the left of her face held in a ponytail with a purple hair tie stared at him imperiously with her gray eyes. She is seen wearing a white t-shirt with long purple sleeves with 'Unagiya' written on it, tight black pants with a buckle belt, and black rubber boots. She also has a brown cap with goggles and work gloves. "You always do this when it's important, and we have tons of requests you always won't do. Why did I hire you again?"

"Because you're always busy, lady." Ichigo plainly said to his boss, Ikumi Unagiya. The only other reason he took this job was cause every other job available wouldn't let a 'delinquent' work for them, and he didn't plan on dyeing his hair because other people didn't like it or think he was some trouble maker.

"Right. As I was saying, a job came in today you actually might like to do, seeing as how you always like to fight. And call me Ikumi-san, not 'lady'."

Looking at the request himself, he couldn't help but have a smirk on his face.

**Shira High School/after School**

"Awesome! You got that Hando jerk to promise to leave me alone yesterday. Thanks sooo much!" The blond haired girl from Shira High school that hired Ichigo's service was ecstatic, too much so for the orange haired teen. Unagiya usually takes on any job offered, except actually selling eel. From the time since he started working at Unagiya, Ichigo never though someone would actually request 'intimidating force' to deal with a problem. He actually couldn't blame her, once he got a look at the guy.

"Here's the money I owe ya." the girl handed the required amount. "But, could you do another favor for me?"

The former Shinigami looked curiously at her. "And what would that be?"

"Well," she shuffled her feet on the ground. "My cat Mi went missing, and I was wondering if you could find her?"

"I'll be sure to let my boss know, we'll be on it as soon as possible."

"Thank you!" she thanked with a smile, telling Ichigo about her cat and contact information, and went to find her friends. With that, Ichigo called Ikumi about another job tasked by the same girl.

"So you're the one!"

Finishing the call, the orange haired looked to find a lean, muscular build guy, looking apprehensively at him. With relatively short, spiky midnight blue hair, he was wearing the Shira's High School boy's uniform. Ichigo figured he was a freshman, basing the fact on his height.

"The one?" Ichigo asked, wondering what he did to get this guy, he never seen before, angry with him.

"You started showing up a while ago, stealing my jobs with lower pay, that just annoyed me." The guy ranted, them pointed at the former Substitute Shinigami making his accusation. " Now you've even taken Madoka's request from me, which is where I draw the line!"

"It's not my fault this district is close enough to Karakura Town to get requests for my job." Ichigo replied, finding this guy's reasoning a little selfish. "Lower your charge price if that's the problem."

"10,000 yen isn't unreasonable! Looks like I'm going to be teaching you a lesson then. I'm Shira's High Agheha Yoshina, class C-1."

The orange haired teen sighed; finding the fight about to start was going to be annoying. "Ichigo Kurosaki. Lets get this over with."

Agheha was already charging Ichigo, sending a right hook at his opponent. The taller teen swung his left hand, easily blocking the punch, while delivering an uppercut with his right to the stomach, knocking the blue haired boy away staggering. Realizing he was facing an experienced fighter, Agheha sized up his target this time, the former Substitute Shinigami, who had yet to even move from his spot with a scowl on his face, just stood in place to see what the kid would do next.

Agheha went in again, this time quickly sending a roundhouse kick within his range. Ichigo dodged by dropping to the ground, delivering a sweeping low kick to trip the shorter teen. While it connected, the blue haired teen quickly used his left hand to stop his fall. Instead of landing, Agheha used his supporting hand to launch himself forward, sending a kick all the while.

Ichigo only got a small scrape on his cheek though, just dodging as he sent his own right hook into his opponents jaw, knocking the blue haired teen away. Before he was out of reach though, the former Substitute Shinigami grabbed Agheha's ankle and pulled him back, delivering a devastating punch to knock him unconscious.

Ichigo did have to admit, if Agheha had starting high school with him, their fight would've been more even. But, his battle experience have him the upper hand. The orange haired teen went to the back of the school, waiting out the commotion their fight caused. While letting things cool down, he caught the sight of Madoka with other girls, doing something by the garbage disposal.

"What do think she'll do?" Madoka asked her friends, leaving with her friends as they chuckled about what they've done.

"I bet she'll be searching till midnight!" the girl with long black hair guessed, their conversation now out of earshot. Once they were out of his sights, Ichigo went to pile. After a bit of digging, the former Substitute Shinigami found a wallet, a girl's wallet. Once opened, the ID showed a rather pretty girl with long light blue hair and grey eyes, but she had a rather plain expression on her face. Before closing it, a red phone card caught his interest.

With a weird closed eye design, it had the word…Psyren on it, and the left corner a darker red covering enough for a double digit number to possibly be on there. Staring a moment longer, the teen placed it back in the wallet and went to find the girl named Sakurako Amamiya.

Luckily, it was rather easy to find her, since as soon as Ichigo walked to the front of the school; she appeared, looking around franticly for her wallet.

"Hey," Ichigo called out to the girl. "Is this your wallet?"

Surprised, the blue haired girl looked in his direction, rushed over, and snatched her wallet right out of his hands.

"A 'thank you' would be nice. I happen to find your wallet-"

"I know." she interrupts the orange haired teen. "It happens all the time."

"…Thank you." Sakurako said after a tense silence. She gave him a quick once over, noticing the uniform he wore wasn't her high schools.

"Your not from here, are you." It wasn't a question.

" I actually go to Karakura High school, names Ichigo Kurosaki, by the way."

"Why are you all the way over here?"

"I finished a job someone at this school hired me to do. My part time job usually takes on any job offered, except sell eel, like the name Unagiya stands for."

She chuckled lightly. "That's a weird named for a job like that. Did your boss named it?"

"Unfortunately." the orange haired teen grumbled. "Named it after her last name to. Won't change it no matter how much I suggest it."

Before Sakurako could say anything else, she suddenly looked left, apparently hearing something the former Substitute Shinigami didn't. He looked at her curiously, noticing the troubled look on her face. Before he could ask what was wrong, she started power walking away.

"Where are you going?"

"Don't follow me!" she exclaimed, not looking back as she moved forward.

"…If you ever need my help, be sure to call Unagiya!" Ichigo called at Sakurako's retreating figure. He finally decided to make his way back, hoping the next job he gets from Ikumi-

"SAVE ME!"

Ichigo quickly looked back, finding the girl he helped had disappeared. This didn't sit well with him; his intuition knew something was wrong, very wrong. He dashed off, looking for Sakurako before anything bad happened to her.

**Four hours later**

"Dam it, where could she be?"

Ichigo was panting; having ran all around this part of town. It was almost eight, the sun barely over the horizon as he walked thought a park to catch his breath. He honestly didn't know who was behind this, considering he hadn't heard anything in the news about any kidnappers, and he honestly wouldn't know if anything spiritual happened.

It was times like these Ichigo wished he wasn't powerless, despite knowing he gave it all away for a chance to spare the world from Aizen's twisted plan. There was nothing, absolutely nothing he wouldn't do to protect people. He always wanted the power to protect all sorts of people, but he _couldn't_ do anything to protect them anymore now…

*RING! RING! *

The payphone's ringing broke Ichigo from his musing. It wasn't really unusual; anyone knowing the number could call it from anywhere. He would've ignored it, but he had a feeling he should answer it. Curiosity won, and went to the phone and answered.

"Yo."

"Yo." He heard his voice repeat, that wasn't normal. His instincts told him he was being watched, so he looked up to find…this weirdly dressed person, if you call it a person, floating in the air above him on a cell phone.

"Who are you?" the former Substitute Shinigami demanded, looking suspiciously as the thing closed its cell. It only made noises, doing a back flip, and disappeared as quickly as it came.

"…What the hell was that just now?" Ichigo wondered out loud, not making any sense of what just transpired. Before dwelling further, beeping noises come from the phone booth, stopping after a few seconds as a card came out from the phone card slot. What he found gave him an ominous feeling. It was the same card he found in Sakurako's wallet.

**Forty-five minutes later**

Wanting to find out was going on, the former Substitute Shinigami used the card to call whoever was behind this kidnapping…

"Question 60: do you feel unsatisfied with school life?"

This, was not what he was expecting thought. Of all the things, he was completing a survey that was impractical; who bleeds blue blood anyway? Dealing with Urahara's weird command fraises was better than this, but it was debatable.

"Question 61: do you have a plan for your future?"

If this was going to be some weird club, and she was just hauled embarrassingly away, Ichigo was going to crack skulls when he finds whoever made these cards. Dealing with his crazy old man was enough in his life; he didn't need to be dealing with more crazy people.

"Question 62: do you plan to let your family know you're late for dinner…"

Hold up, something was happening now.

"You're getting frustrated with your weakness, making you feel helpless! You no longer feel like a protector, missing the life or death battles you enjoyed so much to protect the ones you care for. Your friends don't even want to involve you anymore, moving on without you cause you're a normal person…"

"How do you know all this?" the orange haired teen angrily asked, not liking this situation. "Have you been spying on me?"

"You are quiets easy to read, actually." the female voice spoke mockingly. "Like an open book to anyone willing to read it, Ichigo Kurosaki."

'_She even knows my name. How much does she know?'_

"…You better give Amamiya back."

"And what can you do?" the voice asked, making Ichigo wonder where she was going with this.

"You obviously don't know what you're getting yourself into; do you really think you'll be able to do this on your own as you are? Chances are, this may be the last thing you'll ever do."

"Then all I have to do is survive and win," the orange haired teen simple stated. "I may not be as strong as I use to be, but it'll be more than enough to deal with whatever you think will stop me."

It was silent for a few moments, the line almost appearing dead.

"Question 63: do you want to go to Psyren?"

"Will I be able to find Amamiya there?"

"It all depends on you. Want to come or not? Dial yes or no."

Smirking, Ichigo dialed one, meaning yes on the survey, knowing something was about to happen. It did, the next moment the former Substitute Shinigami now found himself in a wasteland; the cloudy sky now was in the middle of the day. The orange haired teen noticed the Psyren card was where the phone was, and looked at it.

'_Just wait, I'll take whatever you throw at me.'_


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey! Hope everyone had a great new year, and that they enjoy this chapter of Bleach Drifter! I'll tell everyone reading this that it may be quite a while before Under the Circumstances updates, mainly cause I need to see what happens in the next arc in the Bleach manga, so i don't try and go too far from cannon.**

**On with the small review corner...T.T**

**Mas2009: I tried to make a decent chapter length this time, though I doubt its decent lenth, and it took longer to update cause of it, sorry.**

**Neo Rider Double Xtreme:If I do a story, I usually stick with it until I say otherwise.**

**Swordsman of Shadow: It's different, and to be honest, I'm not sure what kind of power to give Ichigo without trying to make it seem like his fullbring.**

**ToAruKagakuNoPersona: I know I'm not as good as gabriel blessing; the fanfic's written by gabriel blessing are vast greater then mine will ever be. I just hope to make fanfic's other people can enjoy.**

**hevenzhell: I'm surprised there is so little crossover stories with Psyren; it was a great manga.**

**On with the story!**

* * *

><p>Trying to find a single person in a vast wasteland was much more difficult than Ichigo imagined, searching for Sakurako Amamiya here was like trying to find a needle in a haystack. Though, it wasn't exactly a full wasteland, abandoned building were in different locations in his hours of combing the area. He was curious where exactly he was at, knowing there wasn't abandoned buildings this size in any wasteland on the world map. If he had his powers, he could've had better chances in searching. Complaining now wasn't helping him find the girl; he knew that. But, being thrown into unknown territory, possibly facing strong enemies with different abilities made him a little uneasy.<p>

A scream took his attention instantly to his right, knowing something bad was about to come to this location. The next instant, an adult came crawling out of one the broken buildings, begging to be saved. Before the former Substitute Shinigami could react, the adult was stabbed in the back, life being distinguished as the things that killed him made it self-known. It appeared to be a large centipede; the only differences were its human hands, multiple tongues, blade like pincers, and human like head with rectangular eyes.

Once it saw the orange haired teen, it charged at its next victim, Ichigo getting in a battle ready stance analyzing his opponent.

"Get down!"

Faster than both could comprehend, the large centipede was split down the middle, the one striking it down sheathing the katana in its scabbard. Ichigo saw that it was Amamiya, both her face and clothes coated in sand and her body was bruise and battered. Judging by her condition, Ichigo figured she could collapse of exhaustion if she didn't get rest now. Sakurako recognized whom she had just saved from that Tavoo.

"What are you doing here?" she demanded, going up to the orange haired teen and grabbed his collar to pull his face down to her level. "Do you have any idea what you have done? There's no going back now, why did you call Psyren?"

"You asked me…to save you!" Ichigo was able get out, being choked being dragged down to the girls level. At her look of confusion, he was able to get out of her strong grip despite her size.

"I knew you asked my to save you before you disappeared, I'm not going to ignore someone asking for help just because I don't know them very well." The realization on her face on their last encounter as he talked left her shaking, and as he finished his explanation she went and hugged him. The shocked boy could only stare with mouth agape, a light blush on his face.

"You stupid fool…"

"…That's no way to talk to someone, especially calling them a stupid fool to their face."

If she was going to retort, it didn't come cause her grip around the orange haired teen was suddenly loosened, and she fell down to the ground. He quickly checked on her, realizing she had a terrible fever when he check her temperature on her forehead. Growing up in a medical clinic, Ichigo was surprised she was able to fight that thing earlier; no normal human shouldn't have been able to move in this condition. If this fever was some kind of side effect due to some power she has, it showed that her resilience was impressive.

"Ichigo…" she called to the teen, getting his attention, her breathing labored as she talked. "This is a game…if you clear it… you can return home. Please…help me clear this game…"

Before asking what she meant, the light blue haired girl went unconscious. Ichigo sighed, more questions appearing without any answers. Taking Amamiya bridal style with katana in his right hand, he went to find a safer location, but realized the two corpses from before were gone. Making a mental note on it, he continued on finding a safer location.

Obviously, Amamiya knew what was going on, and was doing this 'game' for quite a while. His chances of understanding what was going on is with her, and he was going to make sure Amamiya lived so they can get out of this alive. If Ichigo had been someone else, he might have found everything he had seen here impossible to happen. But, his time as a Substitute Shinigami made him use to the unnatural things he had seen and fought.

"HEY! You two!" someone called out, bringing the orange haired teen from his thoughts, looking to the building that was in better condition than most other buildings he has seen. In it were other people, making jesters them to get to their location.

Once in the building, the former Substitute Shinigami found six other guys. One was with short black hair, looking to be in his thirties. Another guy about his age with brown hair appeared more concerned. A muscular teen, still in a high school uniform, appeared to be sizing him up, and while he also had orange spiky hair, it was more pointed upwards. One teen had blond hair held in a ski hat chewing bubble gum. Another older guy had his blond hair in a small ponytail, and the final guy had short light brown hair with glasses.**[1]** Surprisingly, there was a pay phone in the building, looking brand new. Setting Sakurako down, he went to check if the phone still work.

"Its busted," the guy with glasses told Ichigo. "We all tried it ourselves."

"U-Uh…" the nicer appearing guy went to get his attention. "Right before you got here, did you guys happen to see someone strange? No, I mean…Nemesis Q himself?"

'_Nemesis Q?'_ Ichigo thought in confusion, the look he gave appeared to give those guys their answer.

"I knew it! That scrawny little clown was behind all this!" the older guy confirmed.

"I saw him too!" the guy with gum second. "To think he was real…the leader of the Secret Society of Psyren."

"All of us obtained a calling card, took the examination over a public payphone, and then we're dragged to this place, finding ourselves in the middle of nowhere all of sudden." The guy with glasses held up the Psyren card, explaining their common way of entering this wasteland.

"I'm sure you also realized that this isn't Japan, seeing the outside for yourself."

"…Then where the hell do you think we are?" Ichigo asked.

"That's what we're trying to find out."

"What happened, exactly?" the guy with a ponytail wondered. " I was at home and heard a bell start ringing out of nowhere…and then I was standing in a wasteland in the next split second."

"Yeah…there was a bell, and then Nemesis Q…" the nicer sounding guy realized.

"When I picked up the phone, I was here." The guy chewing gum added in.

"Probably…" the older guy speculated. "The bell he used had some kind of tranquilizing effect! And then, when we were all passed out they carted us over here."

Ichigo choose to be quiet about how he came here, knowing he'll be singled out at how different he was brought here. The fact there was some society, and the thing he had seen before coming here was apparently named Nemesis Q was news to him. The main question he had right now was, why did that lady brought random people to this dangerous place?

The guy with the ponytail chuckled suddenly. "Well, whatever! All I can be sure of id that right now, I finally got a lead to discovering the truth behind Psyren's urban myth!"

"Obviously, this is the Psyren Secret Society's so called paradise!" the guy continued, gesturing to the outside wasteland they were currently at.

"I'm glad too," the guy in glasses, agreed, interrupting what the nicer guy's objection. " The fortune I spent online for my phone card wasn't wasted. I'm closing in on the mystery of all those missing person's case."

"As for me, I can't wait to see what happened to the people here and what Psyren has in store for us." The older adult told his thoughts on his situation.

"It was pretty sudden, but I don't have regret it either. This is starting to get fun." The guy chewing gum also seemed to beginning to enjoy their trip here, telling Ichigo they've haven't seen any monster when they've arrived.

' _Why is this mystery driving them so much?'_ the orange haired teen thought, checking on Sakurako to make sure her condition wasn't getting worse. It was around that time the guy with the ponytail made an exclamation.

"Listen up! I'm the one who's going to solve the mystery of Psyren! Get in my way and your dead meat! If you don't want to get hurt, stand back and do as I say! I mean it!"

The former Substitute Shinigami narrowed his eyes, scowl forming as mostly everyone was getting riled up; it was scenario he knew wasn't favorable for their survival. Everyone needed to work together if they had a chance to get through this 'game', and that gorilla was going to get everyone killed.

*Bam!*

Everyone watch in surprise that the other orange haired teen punched the guy trying to take control of the group in the face, sending him skidding to the ground.

"Your in my way. Drop dead." The muscular teen said bluntly.

"Ack! I just remembered, that's Asaga of Chikuwa High! He's notorious at Chikuwa High, the school all delinquents go to in my hood. They call him 'Dragon Asaga', what's he doing here?" the guy in the ski hat looked nervously, not wanting to get in the way of that the infamous delinquent in his area.

"I'm not after the reward," Asaga addressed everyone, looking calm as he explained his reasoning for being here. " I was searching for someone, and I wound up here. I'm looking for Tatsuo, a younger guy I went to school with who got a Psyren phone card and disappeared. Can anyone tell me anything?"

"You frigging punk!" the guy with a bloody nose started to get up, bring a switchblade out as he looked at the one who attacked him. "I'll kill you!"

"Try it. I'll take you out."

"Enough," Ichigo demanded, getting in between the two about to fight." Its not a good time to fight now."

"Move, or I'll stab you too!"

"This is my fight, stay out of it!" Asaga told Ichigo, ready to fight off two opponents if needed.

"…Then I'll take you both on. As soon as we get out of this place, I'll fight you both to your hearts content."

*RING! RING!*

The payphones ringing brought everyone's attention to it, surprised it's still functioning. The former Substitute Shinigami quickly went to pick up the phone, ignoring protests as the phone was now in his hands. The next moment, everyone in the room appeared to be shown some weird vision, energy moving all around them.

"Those seeking Psyren shall taste power and despair!" a voice talked into everyone's heads, Ichigo realizing it was the girl from the survey. No one was excluded from the message as it continued. "Those who reach Psyren shall be granted the world! There is only one exit in this game…"

The inside of a broken building was shown to the players, a telephone booth by a window that showed the wasteland they were at.

"Those seeking Psyren…those searching for the exit from this world…find the gate!"

Then everything was back to normal, as far as this wasteland was concerned anyway. As everyone started to catch his or her bearings, wondering what the message was about, a loud siren noise made itself known. The former Substitute Shinigami found the echoing sound as an official' way to start this game, going back to check on the still unconscious girl, the sound fading from everyone's hearing. Ichigo found that Sakurako's condition wasn't really improving, but it wasn't getting worse either. Cleaning the sweat off her face, he figured she still needed more rest before she could gain conscious.

The orange haired teen now realized the others were no longer in the room, moving towards the direction where the siren sound as he found them from the window closest to him. Knowing their chances for surviving a monster attack was non-existent, he quickly moved to the opening in the building to stop them.

"Wait!" Ichigo called to the group, getting them to stop and look towards him. "You shouldn't be just wondering to places without getting an idea of your surroundings, who knows what might be out there!"

"We already have an idea where this 'gate' is," the guy in glasses answered, adjusting them as he pointed towards their destination. "Following the siren, like the name on the phone cards, should lead to the location needed to complete this game."

"We don't have time to debate about our surroundings," Asaga interrupted the Karakura High student's objection, looking ahead in their destination. "Are you coming or not?"

Ichigo went to say something, but stopped, realizing he was in a loosing argument. If he kept insisting not to go, they would want a good reason why to not travel. Telling them about possible monster attacks is great reason, but they will think he's crazy, without actual proof anyway. Something made the proof disappear, so warning them will do nothing but make them leave quicker. He could try to beat all the guys into submission, and wait on Sakurako to wake up and explain the danger; though there was a chance he could get overpowered. Almost every guy appeared strong, and if they worked together against him, with the switchblade into the equation, they could possibly kill him, and Sakurako would end up alone again. The former Substitute Shinigami knew if she didn't get better before heading to the gate, she'd also be eventually killed.

"…Go on without me," Ichigo finally said, going back towards the starting point. "Don't blame me if you all get yourselves killed."

No one really seem to care as they kept going on, most of the guys found it less competition for the 500 million yen reward. It wasn't long before the group of guys was out of sight, going where they believe the gate that will lead them back. The orange haired teen sighed, regretting on his decision and hoping they actually found the right way while not seeing any strong monsters.

A groan made itself known, Ichigo looking towards Amamiya to find her trying to stand, but falling down to her knees and started coughing.

"Where are the others?" she asked, breathing deeply as Ichigo went to support her and place her in a sitting position.

"They left a little bit ago. After the phone rang, they went looking for the gate."

The light blue haired girl quickly grabbed Ichigo's shirt by the collar, being choked as he was again dragged down to her level.

"Where? Which way did they go?"

"The siren…after the call there was a warning siren…they went that way." Ichigo got out, mild thoughts on Amamiya always seeming to choke him.

"The siren? They went towards it…" she muttered the last part, releasing her grip that allowed the former Substitute Shinigami to breath correctly, looking towards the ground in despair as she yelled out in frustration.

"…So it wasn't the right way to go."

"No… they need more than just the image, they won't find the gate that way! Before they reach it…" Sakurako had another fit of coughs, not finishing her sentence as the orange haired teen told her to take it easy.

"The pay phone," she pointed towards it after catching her breath. "Push the memo button."

Ichigo went over and pushed it, and was surprised that the screen showed a map of the area. The S icon was likely the starting point, and the farthest mark away from it was the gate that was shown before. The group that headed towards the siren had headed north, so it was likely they are going to end up towards the circular field.

"The mark in the field is the siren tower," Sakurako told Ichigo, getting his attention as she explained. "That siren…wasn't a clue… to help us find the gate! The dark part of the map is the danger zone; it's off limits. Once set foot in it, you're dead; no questions asked!"

"…I see." Ichigo confirmed, finding a piece and paper in his pocket. After a bit of searching, an old pencil that was still sharp was found, and he copied the map to the best of his drawing skills. One finished, he took the katana, and carefully picked Sakurako up piggyback.

"If we stay on the white parts of the map, we'll be safe…and be able to reach the gate… without being discovered." The light blue haired managed to say as they began to move.

"We're actually going to the siren tower." Ichigo said bluntly, heading north where the others went.

"What?"

"There's still a change that they're alive, we might actually catch up in time."

"Of course we won't!"

"We will," The orange haired teen said with conviction, determination showing on his face. " We're both going to turn this game around, and I'll be sure to give whoever made this place a piece of my mind!"

Sakurako looked surprised, seeing someone willing to help out with little to no information on where they are. She expected him to ask what was going on by now, but he hasn't ask her anything about it at all. On the way, they were able to find a cave after a few minutes in travel. In order to catch up with the group, and be sure Amamiya gets needed rest, Ichigo decided to leave the light blue haired girl there.

Just setting her down, Ichigo started to head out, a tug on his shirt stopping him as he looked back at Sakurako in confusion.

"Why?"

"Why what?" he asked back.

"Aren't you curious…about where we are, and what's actually going on? Aren't you going…to ask me anything at all?" she explained the question, wanting to know why he seemed to believe her right away while everyone else thought she was crazy till they die seeing it.

"…Will you tell me even if I asked now?" the orange haired teen asked back, continuing with his explanation before Sakurako could answer. "If you didn't tell me until now, you have your reasons. I wouldn't know how to start, and think of any way of asking that wouldn't be traipsing all over your feelings, and stain them with dirt. Until you decide you want to tell me, until you decide it's time for me to know, I'll wait. Until that time comes, you don't have to say a thing."

With that, Ichigo left a stunned girl in a cave to find the guys, before something bad happened to them.

**Siren Tower**

It was a slaughter.

That was the scene Asaga had witnessed as he slid away from it. Once they got sight of the tower that made the siren, this humanoid figure with a steel mask with one red lens wielding a crossbow started killing everyone one by one. Even his best didn't stop it, and it was very strong as well as he experience being thrown into a rock cliff. Even other monsters were called as it started picking everyone off like flies.

The pain in his body was intense, Asaga could barely move as it was. Another monster appeared in Asaga's path, finding him self in a hopeless situation. The monster drew in closer and closer, looming in on its prey as all Asaga could do was watch as his death come closer.

'_Tatsuo…'_

"Move!" Ichigo called out from above, katana being swung down upon the monster that was taken by surprise. While the katana wasn't Zangetsu, it was somewhat manageable as it stuck the red ball on the monsters head, the force sending the blade in. the thing thrashed in pain, sending the former Substitute Shinigami skidding back a few feet tumbling. To everyone's surprise, the monster burst into white ashes, scattering in the breeze as it passed.

'_So it wasn't a coincidence that orb was on that last centipede monster, and the corpses turn to ash when they die.'_ The former Substitute Shinigami realized, brushing off the dirt as he stood back up.

"You ok?" Ichigo asked, helping up the other orange haired teen up and would've supported him hadn't he shrug off the help.

"I've been better, can't believe you saved me." Asaga said, looking back to the other teen. "Speaking of which, what happened to the sick girl?"

"She's back in a cave that direction," Ichigo pointed back southeast, motioning the slightly taller teen to follow him as he sheathed the katana on his back. "I had to in order to catch up with you."

"Hold it," Asaga demanded, grabbing Ichigo's shoulder and turned him back to look at him, knowing something was being kept from him. " How were you able to tell where that monster's weakness was?"

"…I'll tell you once we get to the cave, where it's at least somewhat safe."

**Cave/fifteen minutes later**

*BAM!*

Ichigo was punched, not fighting back as he expected to be hit. Hitting the ground, he looked back up to see a pissed Asaga with the map he drew in his hands.

"Where the hell did you get this map? You knew? The girl, the map, and those monsters…why didn't you tell us?"

"I didn't know either till she woke up! That's why I'm here now! You wouldn't have believe me, and still have left either way thinking I'm crazy!"

"Dam you! It's your entire fault they're all dead! You killed them!" Asaga accused out loud.

"…you can blame me if you want, even if I said not to." Ichigo muttered, hair covering his eyes as he stood. Walking a bit towards the exit, the former Substitute Shinigami stopped in front of it; a tense silence setting in.

"Are all the others really dead?" Ichigo asked, finally breaking the silence.

"…No. When I ran away, one guy was still breathing. It was that dude with the ski hat. He took an arrow in the back, and I caught of glimpse of him writhing around. He's probably dead now." The taller teen told the other orange haired teen.

"…Go take Amamiya to the gate then, I'm going after him."

"Are you kidding me? You going back alone?"

"There's a chance he's alive, people getting hit in the back with an arrow can still live as long as it doesn't hit any vital organs. If we split up, the game can get cleared faster, and Amamiya needs a doctor anyway."

"You going to get killed!"

"In your condition, you might if you follow me. Besides, I still need to find who's responsible for this game and kick their ass." Ichigo took off after saying that, ignoring the calls Asaga gave as he rushed out. A he headed back north, being discreet and quick as possible, the wind started picking up, get harder and harder to see as he moved. The former Substitute Shinigami finally came upon the battlefield, finding a body half way in the ground, the nicer guy with a crossbow bolt through his head, and the guy with the ponytail missing his head.

'_they didn't even stand a chance…'_ the orange haired teen though, anger swirling within. It was put aside though, Ichigo finding the ski cap guy withering in pain.

"Hey! It me, can you hear me?" he exclaimed, going over and helping the wounded teen sit up as he breathed heavily.

"It hurts… help me…"

"Don't talk too much, I'm going to help you now." Ichigo ordered, looking at the wound. It looked deep, but it was high enough not to hit anything serious or hit the spinal cord. Taking his uniform jacket off, he started ripping long strips out for makeshift bandages. Once finished, the orange haired teen took the bolt out in one swift motion, hearing the wound guy cry out in pain, and place some makeshift bandages, bundled up, on the wound to stop the bleeding. Keeping pressure on the wound, he was able to bandage it up, but it wouldn't last very long.

Ichigo slowly helped the guy up, and they carefully started walking away from the area, heading in the direction where the gate is.

"A high school kid me shouldn't…have mess with that phone card…" the guy in the ski hat coughed, finding it painful to walk. "I don't want to die… in the middle of no where."

"Your not. It may be painful to walk, but your not going to bleed to death right away." Ichigo said, keeping an eye on his bandage.

"Can I…ask you a favor? I'm Sugita Nozomi…if I die… can you give this card to my mom? I used it once, but maybe… it'll help her make her ends meet a little…"

"I'll be sure you yourself give the card to her, stop talking like your-"

A howl sounded in the area, a sound Ichigo knew very well, and had him tense in fear in seconds.

*POW!*

the two were knock away by a sudden force, both teens tumbling away from getting struck by behind. The former Substitute Shinigami quickly gained his footing, kneeing down from the blow as he saw the creature he feared it would be.

"… A Hollow!"

**(Author notes)**

**[1] Yeah, it was a bit annoying trying to explain their appearance, and since mostly everyone had no name, it seemed generic just calling them 'that guy' throughout the chapter.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hello! Its halberd42, and i finally finished this chapter! ****Between looking for a collage to go to and going on with daily living, it took a while to get this updated, plus some ideas from Kurosakini helped to.**

**To be a little different this time, I decided to make a challenge for the people who have a account here. In this chapter, I made a reference to a movie. The one person who can find it and answer a question will get a shoutout next chapter and even have a say in something in the story's future. The question to answer is this: What is one of Sakurako's favorite things to eat? leave a review or a private message to answer.**

**On with review corner!**

**Kurosakini: the idea is put into consideration and may happen. Thanks again.**

**Koren Flashblade: There are other people who want Yoshina back; I had mainly wanted to see if people wanted him in the story or not.**

**Krenaya: Is the plot that obvious? I can try and complicate it, but it'll take some thinking. Even the characters aren't in character? Well...I tried basing their personalities from their character's page, but I guess it didn't work well; it may be till next chapter to maybe attempt it.**

**Rc1212: Thank you! glad to know my first crossover attempt is doing alright.**

**Ranma Uzumaki: Yes, its interesting.**

**BratCat: ****^‿‿^ Glad you enjoy it so much. I have nothing against Ageha, read the comment for Koren Flashblade to understand; don't want to repeat myself.**

**Benikaze no shi: Great to know its in your favorable direction. The deal with the harem stories was just something that stuck to me for both my stories; it was something that I could see happen, and not go with normal single pairings. I may do that some time in the future, but its still a while before that happens.**

**On with the story!**

* * *

><p>'<em>I can't believe I'm doing this.'<em>

The thought was from Asaga, carrying a girl on his back as he used the map he got from the other orange haired idiot, who left to find out if the ski cap teen was alive. He honestly don't know what to make of him, not sure if he loves fighting or was just suicidal. Either way, that guy knew how to use a sword, and was able to figure out the weakness of those monsters he seen earlier. While the muscular teen was thankful, he hated being indebted to people.

But, now wasn't the time to worry about it. Asaga stopped to check the map, making sure he was heading the right direction.

"The road forks here into two narrow cannons…its exactly like the map."

"You are…Asaga, aren't you?" Sakurako asked, slightly surprising the muscular teen as he looked over his shoulder at the sick girl.

"…Yeah, I'm Asaga. How did you know? Did I tell you my name?"

She gave a creepy chuckle. "I just know! I know it alright!" The light blue haired girl told the orange haired teen, a creepy expression on her face that matched her chuckle. The orange haired teen now had one conclusion about this girl on his back.

'_She's nuts.'_

"It wasn't Ichigo's fault that the others were killed." The light blue haired teen said, bringing Asaga's attention to her words as he moved towards the gate. " All of you would've laughed off his warning anyway, you're all the same. Acting on your own without a clue, not believing the truth if it was told to you, and people die cause of it; I'm so sick of it…"

The muscular teen was silent. Looking at it logically, there wasn't any fault in what the girl said. While they traveled in a group, everyone was acting on their own. If they were warned about monsters being here before, they wouldn't believe a thing without proof; he had gone too far blaming their death on the other orange haired guy.

Once Asaga thought about it, he was likely going to save the ski cap guy cause he felt responsible. All that the muscular teen could do now, was believe that someone would come back alive.

**Siren Tower**

Things have taken a turn for the worst, in more ways than one. Ichigo_ knew_ he didn't have his powers, there's no way he should even hear, or see the Hollow in front of him that look liked a huge scorpion. Approximately the same size of a two-ton truck, its white body like armor made its claws and stinger appear more menacing; its green markings around the mass eyes and forehead showed the starting of the mask on its face.

The blow the former Substitute Shinigami took left his left arm and his side in pain. He honestly knew Sugita's bandage is now mostly useless, the sudden blow from before being in that area. Trying to go up against a Hollow, with no powers and injured, and having to worry weather the guy he was trying to save will die didn't get Ichigo's hopes very high at all.

"**More humans,"** it spoke in a deep tone, the orange haired teen noting it was also intelligent enough to even speak as it observed its prey. **"I haven't seen your kind here in a very long time."**

"I haven't seen a Hollow in a while, so don't expect to be as enthusiastic as you are." Ichigo told back, bringing the katana out with his right hand, steadily standing up and looking for Sugita while keeping an eye in the Hollow before him. It seemed a bit surprised, but it was hard to tell since the Hollow's mask didn't express much emotion.

"**The fact that you know my kind has me curious; it can suggest that you have spiritual powers, but there's nothing emanating from you at all. So, it must means you must have survived a Hollow encounter somehow. Even after **_**that**_** event happened, you must be very lucky to have survive this long."**

"That event? What do you mean?"

"…**There is something off about you,"** the scorpion Hollow accused, steadily moving closer towards the orange haired teen, and revealing Sugita's seemingly unconscious body behind the Hollow. **" Not knowing what happened? You aren't a survivor at all; the fact that humans stared suddenly appearing here is more than enough reason to know your hiding something from me."**

"Does this mean your going to eat my soul now?"

"**You'll wish I had once I'm done with you."**

The stinger lashed out, Ichigo barely parrying it with the katana, the strength of the blow easily had him stumbling backwards a few feet. The sharp snapping sound of wind reached the teens ears, making him twisted away, and hiss in pain as one of the Hollow's claws grazed the former Substitute Shinigami's hurt side, making the pain worse when he hit the ground. Thinking quickly, the orange haired teen used the blade to loosen the ground some as the Hollow approached, and collected enough dust when it was near to blind it, and forced himself to move away behind a boulder as the scorpion howled in pain.

Looking at the wound, Ichigo found it was bleeding, and will most likely leaving a seeable trail once the scorpion Hollow cleared its eyes. That Hollow was like an improved tank, nearly impossible to beat up close or far away. Practically sensing the danger he moved, with his left hand over the wound in a somewhat comfortable position, away as the cover was melting away from the poison sprayed from the stinger of the Hollow.

"**You're not getting away that easy, human. Once you get hit with my poison, it'll be all over for your mortal body." ** The scorpion stated, and then started sending small barrages of its poisoned liquid, finding some amusement watching its prey trying not to get hit in his hurt condition. The former Substitute Shinigami was tiring quickly, his wound only getting worse from the constant moving, knowing he was going to end up dyeing at the rate he was going.

"**Enough with this game,"** the Hollow spoke out, a serious tone in its voice as it pointed its stinger at Sugita's body. **"Surrender yourself now, or this human will pay the price instead."**

Finding a little relief from not moving, Ichigo glared at the Hollow, and tossed the katana a few feet away from his location. Snorting, the Hollow turned its attention back to the orange haired teen, not noticing Sugita's body turn into ash, which set Ichigo's rage boiling over. As poison was fired at the former Substitute Shinigami, he barreled rolled out the way, adrenaline running through his system to ignore the pain as the weapon was grabbed while the teen charged towards the Hollow while dodging poison shots. The right claw of the scorpion Hollow was swinging its way at the orange haired teen, only to miss as its target skidded under the blow, and Ichigo slides long enough to get close to the Hollows mask as the katana went in its mask.

Surprised that a human was able to get the best of it, no more action was taken as it dissipated away. Ichigo was lying on the ground, breathing hard as the pain was coming back, wondering why this was happening. What was the purpose of this?

Around this time, a powerful gust of wind blew and whisked Sugita's ashes away. While it was going on, it also happened to clear out the sky, revealing a site the orange haired teen couldn't believe once he went up in a sitting position. What he saw in the distance was mount Fuji, craters around it as the wind subsided. The thought that he was in Japan seemed unreal, knowing Soul Society would never let things get _this_ bad.

…He decided not to think about right now, putting it under the many questions he needed answered as soon as possible. Taking off his shirt, he again made makeshift bandages for his side. Once finished, Ichigo got back up and started to make his way towards the gate, hoping they had better luck than he was having now.

**Area by the gate**

Unfortunately for Asaga and Amamiya, they had their own problem to deal with. The humanoid figure in the steel mask had followed them, and was currently looking for their location inside a broken building. Armed with a metal pipe, the muscular teen realized his ribs ached when he breathed deeply.

*WHAM! *

"**Agro…"** came from the steel masked thing as its head was now sticking out the concrete wall. Not wasting a moment later, Asaga quickly hit the pipe in the red lens on the mask. He continued to beat the weapon on the thing with all of his strength he could muster as steel masked thing tried to get through the hole. It slumped down after a while, and the orange haired teen stopped, and dodged as the steel masked thing used its arm to break through the wall also as an attack on the teen. Going on the offensive again, it swung a left hook at the muscular teen, but he ducked under the punch as it destroyed another wall. While its strength was great, the speed the attacks move were something Asaga can dodge.

Seeing no visible red sphere on the humanoid body, the muscular teen figured the white apron it had on was hiding it. Finding an opening in the next attack, he dodged the kick, and in the same motion grabbed on to the apron and pulled it off. With a quick glance, Asaga now sees the red sphere in the chest as the steel mask thing charges at him.

Now having a target, the muscular teen figured that once he gets his opponent off balance, the red sphere will be wide open to take a hit. Seeing a right hook this time, he leaned in to the left and parried, swinging the pipe at the red sphere with all his might. Unfortunately, the steel mask thing was apparently expecting it and stopped the attack cold with its left hand, using the swing of his right hook as a means to bring a roundhouse kick while Asaga was surprised. Being sent flying across the room, the orange haired teen slammed into the concrete wall, rubble flying everywhere with the bigger pieces holding down the muscular teen in his weakened state, not being able to move as the steel masked humanoid figure brought out its crossbow.

While the weapon was getting ready, Sakurako Amamiya got out of her hiding spot to get between the two, though still not in the best of shape, her erratic breathing a sign of her fatigue.

"Don't do this! You're going to die, run!" Asaga yelled at her trying to move to get the girl out of the way.

"I'll buy you some time," she said, taking off her glasses and putting them up. "You hurry up and run!"

"Rise…" the light blue haired teen said next, and the bolt fired out at her. It was blur to the muscular teen, but when it ended, he was surprised she caught the projectile with her bare hand, thought it seemed she was more tired them before.

"Please. I can't hold out much longer…stand up, hurry!"

Another bolt was fired, and Amamiya caught that one as well, but straight after that she held her forehead in pain, her nose bleeding now.

'_I can't…hold out…'_

Annoyed with no results, the steel mask humanoid figure dropped the crossbow, held three bolts between his left fingers, and positioned to throw them with his arm bulging with power.

"Forget about me! Run!" Asaga tried to get her to leave, but she stumbled in trying to stay up, forcing the muscular teen to push his limits and try to get up to save her as she was about to get hit.

'…_Is this…the…end…'_

*Slink*

"…**Abraham?"**

With Asaga finally out of the rubble and shielding Amamiya, after noticing nothing happening, he looked up to find Ichigo stabbing the katana in the steel mask humanoid's back going through the red orb in its chest. Not turning into ash right away, the steel mask humanoid quickly turned breaking the katana, and grabbed the orange haired teen in a chokehold.

"Ichigo!" Amamiya called in worry, seeing the former Substitute Shinigami being lift off the ground, the life being choked out of him.

"…Is that all you got?" the orange haired teen manage to ask, the steel masked humanoid's arm busting into ashes that was used to hold Ichigo. Catching a bit of his breath, he dodged a major punch in the ground that destroyed the area the two were standing on, leaving a sizeable hole to fall in. as the orange haired teen tried to get to safety, the steel masked humanoid gabbed on to him with its last usable arm, parts of its body turning to ash.

"As if I'd let you!" Ichigo yelled at his opponent, kicking its steel masked head as its other arm turn to ash, freeing him as it finally completely turned into ash. Before he fell to his death, Asaga grabbed on to the former Substitute Shinigami's arm, saving him as the muscular teen pulled him up to safety.

"That was a close call," Ichigo said, looking back to the other orange haired teen while catching his breath." I though you and Amamiya were goners for a minute there."

"Worry about yourself more, idiot. You're also in bad shape." Asaga pointed out, seeing the other orange haired teen's only shirt left was used as a makeshift bandage for his own side.

"I still kicked more ass then you did, and I bet I still have enough energy to beat you."

"What do you plan to do, bleed on me?"

"Bite me." Ichigo scowled, but gave a small grin in the end. "Thanks for the help, and for protecting Amamiya while I was gone."

"I'm just paying you back for earlier." Asaga told the other orange haired teen, thinking about what had transpired. Seeing monsters is one thing, but to even see a girl catching arrows with just her bare hands only leaves questions with no answers. Amamiya was obviously hiding something, so he planned on getting some answers.

"Hey," he said to the girl, getting her attention. "What where those monsters?"

"Tavoo: the forbidden species. I don't know who named that, but that is what they're called. Some are humanoid, some are insect-like, there are all kinds of them roaming around this world. I don't know where they come from or what they want, everything I know about them came second handed, and all those people are dead." Sakurako explained.

"There were other people brought here before us?"

"Yes, this game has been going of for quite some time. Its never-ending, and we happen to be the players now."

"What else can you tell me?"

"Nothing right now. We're still not safe, not right now."

Before Asaga could press for more answers, Ichigo got his attention by placing a hand on his shoulder, and told him, " Lets worry about it later, we wouldn't want to be getting on her bad side."

It only took a second for the muscular teen to think about it to agree with the other orange haired teen; seeing her creepy side wasn't something he was fond of. The three looked around the area to search for the gate, and after five minutes they fond it after going up a flight of stairs. The image they were shown before was exactly like what was before them.

"Everyone," Sakurako address to the other teens, putting her glasses back on while also taking out her Psyren phone card. "Take out your phone cards."

As the boys were doing so, the phone started glowing. The light blue haired teen pushed the card into the card slot, and pick the phone up, her erratic breathing returning. The screen on the pay phone showed cards points going from thirty-two to thirty-one.

"Don't push yourself too hard." Ichigo told Amamiya, concern in his face when she looked back at him, and gave a small smile.

"I'm ok. We can go home now."

'_Ichigo Kurosaki…'_ she though as light began to surround her. _'he's impulsive, but understanding.'_

"Don't be afraid, just follow me." She said before being completely being enveloped by light and disappearing. Being calm, the former Substitute Shinigami grabbed the phone, and also placed his phone card into the pay phone, the card points showing on screen went from fifty to forty-nine. After a weird sensation pass through him, he appeared in a much more organized room, Sakurako leaning against the wall.

"We're back in our world." She told the orange haired teen, and he confirmed it looking outside, seeing other people going on without so much a care around nighttime. Now that he looked around the room again, it looked exactly like the broken down building they were in before.

"We're back…in the present."

_That _sentence got Ichigo attention. "…What?"

"We've returned… from the future."

"…So, that's what is going on." Ichigo murmured, looking back outside to the people going about their business.

"Yes. Or I'm out of my mind…" Amamiya told, getting her cell phone out and dialing a number. "Now, I need to call for help…be quiet for a minute."

About that time, Asaga appeared back from the future, appearing around the corner, looking around his location.

"Where are…isn't this the same building we were just in? why does it look so new now?" the muscular teen changed his question, wondering what's happening. Before the former Substitute Shinigami could tell him anything, Sakurako's falling unconscious with a bad nosebleed caught his attention as soon as she hit the ground.

"Amamiya!" Ichigo yelled, moving to her and trying to stop her nosebleed, only it wasn't stopping; she needed real medical help right now.

"Sakurako!" A female voice sound, the cell phone that was on the floor still made its call. "Did you make it back? Are you back from Psyren? Are you alright? Talk to me!"

"…You're a friend of Amamiya's?" the former Substitute Shinigami decided to answer, picking up the cell since Amamiya was currently indisposed.

"Who is this? Where's Sakurako?" the surprised female voice demanded.

"Ichigo Kurosaki, we got through Psyren together. Amamiya needs help, her nose won't stop bleeding."

"She must have overused her PSI! I warned her about the strain on her mind!"

'_PSI? Strain on her mind?...Is she talking about-'_

"BLLURGGHHH!" A throw up sound broke his musing, wonder if the woman on the phone was ok. "Unh, I drank too much."

"Listen…right now, Sakurako needs… special medical care. If you take her to a hospital, it'll just cause trouble; they won't know how to help her. Ichigo, right? Take care of Sakurako till I get there, got that? I'm on my way!"

"Hey," Asaga told Ichigo, getting his attention motioning to turn on the speaker. Once it was on, he continued. "I recognize that park down there. We're in the outskirts of Toyoguchi, this is close to where I live."

'_We're in the town over from Shirataki?'_

"I can get to Toyoguchi in five minutes, wait there for me!"

After the call, the guys managed to find some tissues to block the light blue haired girls bleeding nose. One they were in the park, Amamiya laying down on the bench, Ichigo told Asaga that the place they were at before was the future of their world.

"The future…huh? Can you believe it? If she's actually right… that means Japan, our future, is going to be destroyed."

If the former Substitute Shinigami was honest with himself, he didn't want to believe it. That future practically taunted at him, telling him that he made the wrong decision in giving up his Shinigami powers. Everyone he knew and loved was going to die, and not only was Soul Society unable to stop it, he was powerless to stop it as well.

*CRASH!*

Surprised, the two orange haired teens looked behind them to find a crashed motorcycle, and from the smoke the biker stood out, wearing an entirely black suit and helmet with a black tinted visor.

"I'm here…for Sakurako Amamiya." The voice from the phone said…only to go by the light post the next moment later, removing her helmet with her face out of site. "Just a sec…"

Ichigo sweatdropped at the site of the woman barfing, honestly confused how she didn't crash earlier while driving drunk.

'_Is it safe to leave Amamiya with her drunk like this?'_ The former Substitute Shinigami thought plainly, having doubts about her reliability. Reputing on the helmet on, the woman went to where the light blue haired girl was laying down.

"Are you alright, Sakurako?" the biker asked.

"You really shouldn't drink and drive, Matsuri sensei." Sakurako told the older woman, a small smile on her face.

"Thank goodness, I hadn't heard from you in so long…I was worried!" Matsuri said, relieved that the light blue haired teen was able to make it back after going five days missing.**[1]** Picking her up bridal style, she began to leave.

"Where exactly is this 'special help' your taking Amamiya to?" Ichigo asked, curious about what's suppose to happen now.

"Don't worry, as soon as I got her back on her feet, I'll send her home. The headlines will probably read 'Runaway Returns Home Safely', or something like that." Matsuri addressed the orange haired teens, before heading farther; the woman had a little more to say and turned to them.

"Good job guys, you made it back. Your now Nemesis Q's chosen ones; the Psyren Drifters. Rest up, there's no telling when Nemesis Q next call will come to send you back to the Psyren World."

"Wait, you mean Nemesis Q is going to call again, and send us _back_ to that world?" Asaga asked in disbelief, the thought of going through with it again not appealing to him.

"That's right," Matsuri confirmed. "Until the points on your card reach zero. Here's a word of warning; don't blab about Psyren to anyone else that you're a Psyren Drifter. Not the government, the media or you friends and families. Nemesis Q won't tolerate it, terrible things will happen to you."

"Sorry, I got to run," the woman said, looking back to Ichigo. "Thanks for taking care of Sakurako."

"It's not a problem, just be sure she gets home safely." Ichigo addressed, moving out of the way as she passed him.

"Don't underestimate me just cause*hic*I'm drunk," Suddenly, the wrecked motorcycle floated up in the air, surprising the guys as it quickly move to Matsuri upright, landing safely on the ground as she got on it, with Amamiya riding in the back, and turned it on. "No one will get by me till Sakurako gets her treatment."

'_Was that…telekinesis?'_

"Oh, and another thing," the woman addressed the guys before taking off. "You'll probably have an intense fever and nosebleed tonight, but don't worry, just sleep it off. They're just symptom of your infection by the Psyren Atmosphere."

At their confused looks, Matsuri just gave them a thumps up and said, "It's your powers coming online*hic*."

With that, the biker drove off with the light blue haired teen before either guy could ask about their 'infection'. It wasn't long before it was quiet again, both guys alone in the park.

"…Do you think it's ok to leave Amamiya with a drunk driver?" the former Substitute Shinigami asked Asaga, still a little uneasy about the biker's drunk driving.

The muscular teen shrugs. "She called that biker chick, and they seem to trust each other, so there's no reason to worry about it. Plus, Sakurako seems to be doing well, surviving that Psyren world for who knows how long."

"You didn't seem to know her when we were in Psyren, did you reconize her from somewhere?"

"It been about four and a half years, but we were in the same fifth grade class for half a year. I've got a ton of questions; so when Sakurako gets back, let's meet up again. My full name is Hiryu Asaga, and I already heard your name enough to know it, Ichigo Kurosaki."

Hiryu began to leave, saying one last thing the other orange haired teen was able to hear. "Sakurako has a totally different vibe now, but she's just as cute as ever."

Watching the muscular teen leave for a moment, Ichigo decided to head home, wondering why he felt agitated by the comment the other orange haired teen made. So much into musing with himself, he never did notice Nemeses Q watching him, disappearing once the former Substitute Shinigami was out of its site.

**Kurosaki Clinic/Thursday**

As the former Substitute Shinigami headed into the door of his home, he idly wondered how his old man would handle him, since its been a while when he was late coming home.

"I'm home."

*POW! *

Crashing into the floor, the orange haired teen cursed under his breath while grabbing his pained chest, not helping his already hurt side.

"Do you have any idea how late you are?" Isshin Kurosaki, a tall muscular man with spiky black hair and brown eyes with thin facial hair around his mouth and on his cheeks stood above his son. As a doctor, the man had on a white lab coat over his casual red shirt and blue trousers. "It has been almost five days, in case you haven't notice. And when you do get back home, you miss dinner and its after midnight! Do you know how much your sisters were worried about you?" **[2]**

"Sorry," Ichigo muttered, knowing how much his father worries over Karin and Yuzu. While his old man was more serious this time cause of them, he had every right to be wondering what was going on. But, having to keep a secret, the orange haired teen couldn't explain it to him. "Things are a bit complicated right now."

"Is this complication too much for parental understanding? I've already told you, no matter what reason to he who disrupts this household's iron harmony, only a punishment of blood can be rendered."

When that sentence finished, Ichigo felt something run down his face, and when he wiped some of it off, he found blood on his hand.

"Ichigo! Are you alright?" the teen heard his father ask with worry, but around that time a major headache hit, his vision getting blurry. It wasn't long before he fell into blissful darkness.

**Morning/ Friday**

The sun's light hit Ichigo's face, startling him awake. Rubbing his eyes, he found himself in his bed, a little bit after two in the afternoon once looking at the clock in his room. The memories from last night hit him, and he moved the blanket off, seeing real bandages on him. Turns out what that woman said were true, fever and all.

Getting up, the orange haired teen changed into his 'Nice Vibe' shirt, a pair of light blue jeans and white socks. Once downstairs, he saw no one was home, figuring his old man was out to get groceries for dinner while his sisters were at school. Getting a glass of orange juice to drink, he double-checked to make sure he was alone. Once he was sure, the former Substitute Shinigami went and wrote a note, saying he'll be back later today by his empty glass. He still had a lot on his mind, and waiting for his family to get home to lie about where he's been wasn't something he was ready to do yet.

As he headed out the door with running shoes, he never noticed the now cracked glass finally shatter into many pieces.

**Outskirts of Toyoguchi/a few hours later**

When Ichigo thought about the few things he heard and seen last night, aimlessly walking around, about 'PSI', the straining on the mind when overused, and the telekinesis shown. He figured both Amamiya's and the bicker chick's powers were pretty much psychic abilities. For a long time, people have wondered if telekinesis was real. If anything, there are a few secret work facilities they study and believe it to be real today. If there were people with such abilities, it was very rare and hard to find such people.

Most of the populace figured it was just a magic trick, but from the things the former Substitute Shinigami have seen before, he knew it was a real now. Commotion brought the orange haired teens from his musing, looking down a street, he found Hiryu going up against a few guys, and one guy now just managed to hit the muscular teens back, and from yesterday Ichigo figured Hiryu was gritting his teeth in pain as he made his way to help the muscular teen.

When the main guy in the group brought out a retractable baton, ready to use it against his opponent, he was suddenly brought down by another orange haired teen, slamming his face into the ground from behind.

"Miwa!" the guys called in surprised.

"Looks like you can use some backup, Hiryu." Ichigo said aloud, looking for his next opponent.

"Ichigo!" Asaga looked a bit surprised, but accepted the help anyway. It wasn't long for both orange haired teens to knock out the two guys attacking the muscular teen before, and when the main guy got up, his help to go against 'Dragon' were out, two opponents before him not looking pleased.

The guy nervously chuckled, not as confident as he was before. "S-sorry?"

*SLAM! *

One problem diverted, the two orange haired teens made they way back to the park last night, after calling a few ambulances for the beat up guys.

"It almost hard to believe last night was actually real," Hiryu talked, looking back up the building the three were at. "Do you actually think that future will happen to Japan?"

"I don't want to believe it, but we have to find out the truth when Amamiya gets back." Ichigo said, looking back to the muscular teen. "By the way, last night…"

"Oh…" Asaga immediately understood. "Like a million bucks, thanks. Nosebleed and all…"

With that understanding out the way, it got a bit quiet between the two. Seeing something was on the muscular teens mind, the former Substitute Shinigami decided to see what was up.

"Something on your mind?"

"…Its just I can't believe Sakurako changed so much. During elementary school, she was always smiling, cheerful, bright, and really popular. She was also like a mediator between me and Ageha…"

" You mean Ageha Yoshina?" Ichigo asked, slightly surprising the muscular teen.

"Yeah, you know him?"

"Only because he didn't like how my job got in his way of getting money. He's doing job requests for 10,000 yen each job, while my job is similar to his, our pay depends on what the job is."

"Sounds like something he'd do." Hiryu confirmed, and then went with a weird topic about the midnight blue haired teen. "How tall is he?"

"…What?"

"How tall is Ageha now?" the muscular teen repeated the question.

"Why do you want to know?"

"When we were younger, he always teased me on how short I use to be. Since I haven't seen him for a while, I don't know if he's as tall or taller then me. I ask again, is he taller then me?"

"…If you must know, he's way shorter then you, by about eight inches."

Comprehending the differences, Hiryu started happily chuckling. "Great! Now I can get back at him. I'll see you later." The muscular teen waved goodbye in a happier mood, the former Substitute Shinigami watching him leave with a plain look on his face.

**Kurosaki Clinic/Monday**

"GOOOD MORRRNIIING ICHIGOOO!"

Hearing his father's normal wake up call, Ichigo brought up a left hook up and gave Isshin a punch in the gut. Following his old man's momentum with his fist, the orange haired teen sent him crashing out the window, straight down into the street below.

Having to explain his disappearance and his condition when coming home, he told his family that he was rescuing a girl, that was mistaken as her running away from home by some gang, and a knife that grazed his side lead to him getting sick since his makeshift bandages were only temporary and the wound just got infected when making his way home. While the story on the news and what his father seen when he got home helped backed up his story, they were still a bit skeptical.

His father knew he wasn't dumb enough to try and go searching for Hollows, so his old man wanted him to update on where he was, and let them know if he's going to be gone for more than a day; just to be sure he's all right. Agreeing, all he could hope for was that he wouldn't be called into the Psyren world at the wrong time.

Finishing putting on his spare uniform, he got his stuff for school, a quick bite to eat, and said goodbye to his sisters while heading to school.

"IIIIIICHIIIIIIGOOO!"

*BAM! *

"Sup." Ichigo greeted Keigo Asano; just holding his hand straight across while his friend ran into it. The hyperactive teen also had on the Karakura high school uniform, standing up opening his brown eyes… and dusting off his shaved head.

You see, because Keigo lost a Christmas party game, Mizurio made him go through with the penalty, which was getting a Mohican hairstyle. The next day after he got it, his teacher found out and forced him to shave it off, leaving him bald like he was still today. **[3]** The only upside for Keigo was that his sister was treating him a little better, since she liked guys with shaved heads. Ichigo was still a bit bothered by the change of hairstyle, but he was mostly used to it now.

"Ichigo! You've been gone for days, why do you always do that to me just after we see each other for so long? Aren't I your friend?" Keigo overreacted again; going through the routine they go through.

"You practically asked for it. You think after running into my arm for so long, you would've learned to stop. It's not going to change by your persistence." The orange haired teen told the hyperactive teen, going on his usual route to school.

"_Ichigo Kurosaki, can you hear me?"_ a voice in the former Substitute Shinigami's head spoke to him, distracting him from what Keigo was saying next. And the voice wasn't Zangetsu or his Inner Hollow.

"What the hell?" Ichigo muttered.

"_Can you hear me? It's me, Sakurako. Listen carefully, I'm not here, but I'm close to where you're walking. I'll be heading your way, over and out."_ Amamiya said in the orange haired teen's head, and he now confirmed that she telepathically talked to him.

"HELLLLOOOO?" Keigo almost yelled, waving his arm in from of the former Substitute Shinigami, who stopped walking and paying attention to the hyperactive teen. Blinking, Ichigo just shook his head as if he had something on his mind and realized he wasn't paying attention.

"Sorry, what?"

"You just spaced out and weren't listening to what I was saying. Is there something wrong?"

"Well…"

"ICHIGO!"

The two guys looked to find a girl with light blue hair and grey eyes with glasses on power walking towards them. She was wearing a light pink shirt, that was over a purple long sleeved shirt, with a rabbit's head on it with the words 'little' going over it. She also had a striped scarf on around her neck, also wearing long striped stockings on her feet. Finishing the look was a black skirt and black leather moccasins.

"So this is where you are, I was looking all over for you." She talked in a happy like voice and smile, but Ichigo knew she was faking it the moment he saw her smile. Rukia had done this act when he first started out as a Shinigami to get by people he knew in school. While annoying to watch, it was effective.

"Wait, wait, wait! Keigo over reacted, anime tears going out of eyes as he looked to the orange haired teen with Amamiya a little out of earshot. "You mean to tell me you just skipped school for so long was because you were picking up chicks? Why didn't you invite me? You never showed interest when I offered, and you don't invite me when you actually do; what the hell?"

"I wasn't." Ichigo scowled to the hyperactive teen, not amused. " While I was working, I happened to meet her at Shira High School cause I found her lost wallet."

"That's right, " the light blue haired teen got into the conversation, looking happily to the orange haired teen. "Not only that, he saved me from a gang that had captured me, and to thank him, we set plans for a date today!"

'_Oh shit!'_ Ichigo thought, trying to deny what was said, but it was too late.

"WWWHHHAAAATTT!" Keigo screamed, disbelief on his face from the girl's words. Before the orange haired teen could speak, he went running off to school yelling, "Traitor!"

"…Did you have to do that?" the former Substitute Shinigami ask the light blue haired teen, who now had her normal look on her face.

"It seemed liked the best way to get you alone. It's time you know what's going on; come with me."

Ichigo sighed as he followed Amamiya, knowing his friends are going to get the wrong idea when Keigo tells them what he had witnessed.

**(Author Notes)**

**[1] I decided to have a time difference when they get back, since originally Sakurako was in Psyren longer till Ageha went himself. So it'll be about twenty hours in the Psyren world will be about five days in the present.**

**[2]…I couldn't get Isshin's humor to work when Ichigo returned home. All my attempts at it were something I couldn't stand, so I'm sorry if he appeared too much out of character this chapter. ****TT‿‿TT**

**[3] Watch the end of Bleach episode 343, there's actually ****a ****Shinigami Illustrated Picture Book**** about the changes Keigo's hairstyle went through.**


	4. DISCONTINUED

I apologize to all my fans, who have been reading this fic, and I am also very, very sorry to Mas2009, cause I can't complete Bleach Drifter. I've lost my original motivation to write it, and gave up. It also made me realize I've only written challenges, not a fic idea of my own.

I apologize again, and please still support my other fics; I'm also starting a new fic sometime soon, so be on the look out for it if interested.


End file.
